Extrusion International 1-2022

19 Extrusion International 1/2022 our technology to them wherever they are in the world,” he added. The new trading conditions also had an impact on how the company promoted itself and publicised its activity. Marketing Director Jeannette Woodman explained: “We quickly switched our focus from a ‘broad-brush’ approach to one that is far more zoned in on the different sectors and parts of the world. By re fi ning our use of the latest in computer and electronic communications we have been able to impact target markets with information that is spe- ci fi c to individual requirements – and at a fraction of the cost of attending a major international expo!” For Vetaphone, the new trading conditions have opened new business opportunities, and in addition to reporting a record sales year, 2021 has seen the company move to the No 1 spot worldwide in surface treatment technology. As Kevin McKell put it: “We were the fi rst, so to be at No 1 in our 70th year is a fantastic achievement. Bring on 2022!” Vetaphone A/S www.vetaphone.com Joint Venture in China Established „ The Chinese Fujian Highsun Engineering Plastics Co, Ltd and AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH, a member of the German Fed- dersen Group, have signed an agreement on 22 December 2021 for future cooperation in the Greater China region (China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan). Subject to approval by the relevant antitrust authorities, Highsun will acquire a 51% stake in AKRO Engineering Plastics (Changzhou) Co, Ltd. from AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH. The remaining 49 % of the shares in the company will con- tinue to be held by AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH. The joint venture will start its activities on the market af- ter the completion of the share transfer. Until then, AKRO Engineering Plastics (Changzhou) Co., Ltd. will continue its business operations as usual. The joint venture will oper- ate under the name Highsun AKRO Engineering Materials (Changzhou) Co., Ltd. AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH will support the JV with its know- how in the areas of research and development as well as engineering. The JV will also use AKRO-PLASTIC’s ICX tech- nology and obtain an exclusive licence to manufacture and market in the Greater China region the products previously manufactured by AKRO-PLASTIC in the People’s Republic of China. Outside the Greater China region, AKRO-PLASTIC will continue to hold the exclusive rights to its brands, for- mulations and technologies and will continue to operate completely independently there as before. The quality standards and processes remain unchanged. No changes to the material formulations are planned, the production and quality assurance processes will remain un- changed and the quali fi cation standards for raw materials will not change either. In the future, customers will continue to be able to obtain AKRO-PLASTIC products of the same quality from all plants worldwide, including the JV plant in China. Highsun is the fully backward integrated world market leader for PA 6 and has an excellent infrastructure as well as extensive relationships in China. AKRO-PLASTIC has leading PA compounding technology as well as a strong position as a supplier to a large number of global compa- nies in its customer base. The combination of the strengths of both partners will en- able the joint venture to build a leading position for PA compounds in China. The shareholders intend to develop the joint venture into a leading player in the Chinese engi- neering thermoplastics market. AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH www.akro-plastic.com ThenewlyopenedShowroom inDenmark is apermanent display ofworking surface treatment technology for in-personor online presentations anddemos Unfortunately, not all contract partnerswereable tobepresent at the signingof the contract inFuzhou/China. From left to right: LindaXu, Sales Director; Qi Jiwei, OperationsManager andDeputyGeneralManager (bothAKROEngineeringPlastics (Changzhou) Co., Ltd.); Chen Jianlong, Chairman, HighsunHoldingGroup;Wilfried Jobst, GeneralManager AKROEngineeringPlastics (Changzhou) Co., Ltd.; ChenZhong, President, HighsunHoldingGroup; andShenZhonghai, ViceFinanceDirector, HighsunHoldingGroup